As the popularity of home and micro businesses rise, it's refreshing to see platforms give Etsy (once, and some may say still, considered the paragon of indie handmade business) a run for its money. And if any platform is equipped to pull it off, if for no other reason than the number of its sellers, Amazon would fit the bill. But the unanswered question remains: do we want it to? This summer, amidst constant discontent experienced by Etsy sellers, Amazon announced plans to open its own Handmade at Amazon marketplace featuring items defined, by Amazon, as "handmade by you (the artisan), by one of your employees (if your company has 20 or fewer employees), or a member of your collective with less than 100 people". Unfortunately, this definition, (mostly) shared by Etsy, has been the center of constant consternation between seller and platform as artists continue to list products created by cheap foreign labor, despite a ban on manufactured goods. Etsy couldn't police it, so there's no reason to assume Amazon can. Or will.

Let's take a look at Handmade at Amazon's features (as I currently understand them):

Currently (slightly) juried. New sellers must be approved. While manageable now, soon quality control will be an issue, as manufactured goods begin to sneak by inspection.

Fees include a monthly sellers fee of $39.99, waived until August 2016, and 12% +.50 per transaction (including payment processing), applicable immediately. Potentially the most expensive platform, depending on the volume of sales processed each month.

PayPal is not an accepted payment method. Payment processing is completed through a sellers personal or business bank account, through third party affiliates, such as Stripe, usually with a 1-3 day wait between purchase and payment. This makes immediate shipment difficult for the micro business.

Sellers are provided with a customized URL, but their shop fronts are standard Amazon fair. This means your brand will be non-existent as you work beneath the umbrella of Amazon's larger business model.

Advertising is available for additional fees. I have not priced these fees as they are only available to registered sellers. Aside from unreliable internal traffic, most sellers with small scale production levels will still be expected to manufacture their own traffic and buyers.

Searchability. While products will be listed as "a separate category on Amazon" in which "products will appear alongside other handmade items for customers to browse, discover, and shop" it is still unclear if products will be searchable from Amazon's main page search bar, or only within the confines of the handmade category.

Though not ideal, with exceptionally high fees unfavorable to the micro business, Amazon may prove to be the competition needed to bring Etsy to heel. My review, however, is greatly limited by my interaction (or lack there of) with the platform, as the invitation and acceptance process is frustrating for those of us impatient folk. The details I've provided here are available directly from the Handmade at Amazon services page, and my opinion of these services is based only on my personal experience selling handcrafted goods on third-party platforms, in general. This platform still has plenty opportunity to prove itself as a viable resource for the micro business.

So, tell me... what are your thoughts on the new platform? If you are an Etsy seller, will you be ditching its much lower fees for the much wider Amazon audience?

UPDATE: I was recently given thisinteresting article, regarding SEO and the exploitation of sellers to generate more traffic within Amazon, even after sellers close their accounts. It was an interesting read. I'll be contacting Amazon regarding whether or not accounts will be deleted upon request, and sold items removed from the site (instead of coming up in search as "unavailable"). The last thing any of us want is do well, move to our own website, and then have to fight with our old presence on Amazon for searchability.

I have been curious about the Amazon Market. There is plenty of excited buzz. I was really glad to see your post with all the details.

I really do not sell much these days, and although the internet is a wonderful venue for some it never appealed to me, thus the Amazon Market will not be for me. I am probably too old fashioned, but I want to look at the detail. I want to see how well made it is. I want to flip it over. I want to feel what it is I am buying. I have moved too often to find local shows or galleries and honestly, my inventory is pretty darn low.

I have wondered how it would work and am glad you did the research! I think it sounds good as I am looking for something besides etsy to host my items. The only drawback I see is that I use PayPal and PayPal ONLY for processing payments.

The fees are incredibly high, far too high for me and my small jewelry and fiber business. I am but one person and although I appreciate that they basically jury you in, still, the fees are prohibitively expensive for my budget, which mostly needs to go back into paying for tools, supplies and of course, living expenses. Also, no Paypal? No way. Sorry, Amazon. I'll stick with ordering cheap used books from you.

I unfortunately have not yet proven that online shops can serve as a serious selling platform for handmade jewelry. Maybe I am saying that because my market is European and my products are more than 2$ worth bracelets or earrings. I am putting a lot of effort in online activities which contribute a lot for my jewelry lessons but not much to my selling of handmade jewelry. I hope that this becomes better in the west European market I belong to. In any case just like you Nicole I am not completely a fan of Etsy for jewelry sales (while I am of materials for jewelry). And indeed, I think most definitely that the prices you named here are very high for mirco businesses, especially starters or ones that need another platform than their own website.

I am an Etsy seller. I have difficulty putting enough on line to sell. I make lots and lots but we have a brick and mortar gallery and as soon as I put something on Etsy often as not it sells in the gallery and I have to remember to take it off.
I'm looking for something other than Etsy. The fees, though not high, are a consideration. If I ever can take the time to figure out how to tweak my own website I may drop off of Etsy.
Amazon fees are way too expensive for my business. Thanks for posting this. I always learn so much from you.

I have applied and been accepted, but after ready your post, I'm not so sure that I will be participating. The fees are far to high for me, and like many others, I like and use Pay Pal. I have been using ETSY and have had no problems at all. I only wish there was an easier way to get more traffic. Still, I think I will stick with ETSY.

I did not see anything 'laborious' about the application process-it was less than 10 questions! I have been accepted and I just set up my store. I feel as long as they are going to waive the $39.99 shop fee for a year, I will try it and see how it goes, it isn't like you are bound to a contract. Etsy is definitely WAY different than when I started selling 4 years ago and I am ready for something new and different!

Reply

Nicole Hanna

9/23/2015 09:44:56 am

Laborious was not the best word. Perhaps exasperating... waiting either for the invitation or until they were accepting general requests to join and sell, and then waiting for the acceptance, and then waiting for the platform to be available to sellers to begin setting up. It would have been nice, I think, for those anxious to move from Etsy, if they'd announced the platform when it was ready to be used.

For me, it's not the $39.99 fee itself, but it's that fee with the 12% +.50 final value fee that they take. The two together is overkill in fees. So, even though the monthly fee is waived, the 12% fee is still pretty high unless you're selling high ticket items or end up getting lots of sales. Which I certainly hope is the case for the folks who sign up!

I got juried into Amazon Handmade in November, but it took me until this week to start loading art. I haven't loaded jewelry yet, just small paintings and mosaics. I'll be trying out jewelry next week, and I'll give Amazon until August to prove themselves a worthwhile investment. I'm disappointed to see a lot of buy/sell jewelry 'artists' juried onto Amazon...who are really only stringers and assemblers of commercial charms and chains.